In a shocking incident, a chopper carrying Chief of Defense Staff Gen Bipin Rawat and 14 others crashed in the deep forests of Nilgiri Hills near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu. The ill-fated chopper also had Gen Rawat’s wife, his military advisor Brig. Lidder and 12 others. Five bodies have already been recovered and it is unlikely that there could be no survivors in the crash. However, reports said that two persons are still alive and have been shifted for treatment.
The chopper, MI 15, is a state-of-the-art VIP carrier and was fully competent to undertake the mission. The cause of the mishap is not yet known and the airforce has ordered an inquiry. In a two-liner statement on Twitter, the air forces said: An IAF Mi-17V5 helicopter, with CDS Gen Bipin Rawat on board, met with an accident today near Coonoor, Tamil Nadu. An Inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident.
The Mishap occurred when Gen Rawat was on his way to Army Staff College in Wellington. Gen Rawat left New Delhi at about 11 am and he landed at Sulu air force station near Coimbatore. From there, he boarded an Mi 15 chopper. As of now the reasons for the crash are not known. Inclement weather, low altitude of the flight could be the reason for the crash, say experts.
The Prime Minister, the Home Minister and the Defence Minister were huddled in a meeting on knowing about the incident. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh also rushed to the residence of Bipin Rawat to meet his family members. A statement is expected on Thursday.
